This gift will fund four full undergraduate scholarships for civil and environmental engineering for four years; and one fellowship for an urban and regional planning graduate student for four years.

College of Engineering Interim Dean Ronald Riggs said, “These are the most comprehensive scholarships we have in the College of Engineering. Providing full tuition scholarships significantly removes a major “worry” for many of our students and frees them to be able to focus on academics. In addition, the opportunity to intern with SSFM provides our students valuable work experience related to their major while also allowing them to earn money for living expenses. The college values this long-term, continuing partnership with SSFM in preparing the next generation of civil engineers.”

SSFM International Inc. is a Hawaiʻi-based business with a long history of supporting the University of Hawaiʻi. The company’s lifetime giving, including this new gift, totals more than $800,000.

“We are grateful to Michael Matsumoto and SSFM for their generosity and commitment to our students. This support will allow us to provide a rich learning opportunity for students interested in pursuing a professional planning career. The benefits of this gift will have a lasting impact on our students, our college, and the field of urban and regional planning,” said Denise Eby Konan, dean of the College of Social Sciences.

Karen Umemoto, urban and regional planning chair in the College of Social Sciences, added, “We are very grateful to receive this generous gift from SSFM for students in our master’s degree program. It not only offers students an educational opportunity, but the added internship is a valuable training opportunity in the specific skills and knowledge needed for a professional planning career in the private sector. SSFM’s willingness and ability to mentor our students is priceless.”

“We are honored to support the UH Mānoa College of Engineering and the Department of Urban and Regional Planning with these scholarships,” said Michael P. Matsumoto, UH Mānoa College of Engineering alumnus and president of SSFM International, Inc. “This continues to be one of the ways that SSFM is able to honor our commitment to our profession and our community. SSFM understands that scholarships play a key role in making education accessible for many promising future engineers and planners. By partnering with UH we can participate in the education of the next generation of engineers for our state.”